Andrew Berry presented a story about an opposing GM and his former boss who contacted out after the Browns secured a playoff spot against the Jets in Week 17.
Around 11:00 p.m. on December 28th, Cleveland Browns Stadium looked like a zoo. The Cleveland Browns secured a postseason spot with a dominating victory over the New York Jets and were one of the hottest teams in football.
It was football bliss. David Njoku yelled “We’re going to the playoffs” into the Thursday Night Football camera, Jim Schwartz had the defense go around the field high-fiving the fans, Juan Thornhill held a whiteboard with “Playoffs!” scribbled on it, and everything was fine in Cleveland.
Andrew Berry, General Manager, recalls numerous details from that night, but one in particular stands out. When the party died down, Berry checked his phone and noticed a message from his former boss, Los Angeles Chargers General Manager Tom Telesco.
Berry’s employer in Indianapolis was Telesco, and despite his enormous success, Berry smiled as he recalled how “demanding” he was.
On that Thursday night, Telesco was pleased of his protégé. Telesco stated in his message that:
“Your squad had every justification to be a ten-loss team, yet your players, coaches, and staff never gave up. Good work and congratulations.”
To Berry, that was more than just the top of the iceberg. It was the awareness that those outside the Browns headquarters in Berea could see what was going on in Cleveland and knew how unlikely the Browns’ season had been.
We watched it weekly. This Cleveland Browns team just keeps finding ways to win. They fought for one other and played for their brothers, who were lined up next to them.
Although the season ended abruptly, the Cleveland Browns left an impression on the whole league.
